An army colonel fraudulently claimed nearly £100,000 in allowances to send his children to private schools, a court martial has heard.
Col Roddy Lee, a father of four, pretended that he and his wife had moved to accommodation on an RAF base after he was posted to army headquarters in Hampshire, it was claimed.
But the prosecution alleges that the couple were still living in the family home in Wiltshire, which meant he was not entitled to the allowance.
The board hearing the court martial was shown photographs of the two homes. The one in Wiltshire, which the prosecution claims is the true family home, included a “well-stocked” fridge, freezer and pantry and there was damp clothing hanging on a clothes horse. The one on the RAF base appeared sparser and the wardrobes almost empty, it was claimed.
Martyn Bowyer, prosecuting, said the court would hear from neighbours who would say the bins at the property on the RAF base were rarely put out and the blinds were often shut.
The court martial at Bulford, Wiltshire, was told that Lee had for a number of years legitimately claimed continuity of education allowance (CEA), which enables service personnel to send children to boarding school to prevent disruption to their education caused by postings around the UK and abroad.
In 2015, he was posted to army headquarters in Andover, Hampshire, less than 50 miles from where he and his wife were living near Devizes, which would have made him ineligible for the allowance.
The court was told that if a member of the armed services could show he or she had been forced to move more than 50 miles for a new job they could still be eligible for CEA. Lee obtained accommodation at RAF Odiham in Hampshire, which is just over the 50-mile mark from the Wiltshire house.
During the academic year 2015-16, Lee claimed £98,306.80 in school fees, the court martial heard. Two of the children were sent to Marlborough College in Wiltshire and the others to two prep schools.
Bowyer told the court that in 2015 Lee was posted to Andover and was “clearly anxious” to continue to qualify for the allowance. He said: “The prosecution say that the evidence will demonstrate that Col Lee was well aware that his entitlement to continuity of education allowance might be affected by his new posting, and as a result obtained service families’ accommodation at RAF Odiham. The prosecution case is that it was never his intention to move his family from the address in Wiltshire.”
Bowyer said Lee did use the property at RAF Odiham and that his wife, a junior doctor, joined him from “time to time”. He added: “But the case against him was that his true home was his family home in Wiltshire. The RAF Odiham address was more like a week-day crash pad than as a family home.”
Lee was arrested in September 2016 and told military police the property at RAF Odiham was his family home and they would go to the house in Wiltshire for a couple of weekends every month. He claimed he said he left for work early in the morning and returned late in the evening, which would account for the neighbours at RAF Odiham not seeing him.
Lee denies three charges of fraud. The court martial continues.
